Revelry takes a toll on traffic, 1 crushed to death

JAIPUR: Several areas in the heart of the city came to a standstill as traffic went haywire while the BJP celebrated its one year in power on Saturday. A 35-year-old man was crushed to death in Malviya Nagar by a bus ferrying people participating in the rally. The Congress accused the BJP of celebrating at the cost of people's lives and demanded an apology from the government.
The worst areas affected by the chaotic traffic were Jhalana and all the roads leading to Rambagh Circle. The buses and other heavy vehicles which were ferrying people for the rally at Janpath were parked at Jhalana Dungari. The chaos was such that hundreds of BJP workers could not even walk to Janpath from Jhalana due to the jam. Several youths created ruckus in Jhalana when they could not reach the rally spot.
The man identified as Azaz Khan, a resident of Tonk who lived in Sanganger, was killed near MNIT campus on Jhalana Bypass. "The bus involved in the mishap had come from Jodhpur. It was leaving for Jodhpur after the rally when it lost balance and crushed the victim to death. The driver was arrested and the bus has been seized. The body has been kept in the mortuary for postmortem examination," said a police officer.
Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma said people have to sacrifice when the BJP celebrates their victory. "People have still not forgotten how a retired engineer was killed after getting stuck in barriers put up for the BJP rally after the party won assembly elections last year. The victim is yet to get compensation. The victim in the Saturday mishap should also get compensation," said Sharma.
Those who were most affected due to the jam were school kids who were returning to their homes after school and people going to office. The congestions were reported on all the roads leading to Rambarh Circle and even areas like Ajmeri Gate, Sanagneri Gate, Transport Nagar and Sodala.
The traffic police remained on toes and grappled with several complaints of minor accidents from across the city. A policeman said after the rally nearly a dozen incidents of mishaps were reported and as the policemen were already deployed for managing traffic, they could not reach the spot on time.
Chaos prevailed on the road linking Gandhi Circle and Apex Circle as buses were parked on the roadside and with no traffic policemen to prevent them, long queues of vehicles stuck in road jam made it difficult for even pedestrians to walk. Some BJP workers who had come for the rally created ruckus after their vehicle got stuck in a jam at Jawahar Circle.